Nathaniel gillard



(No Model.)

N. GILLARD. MACHINE FOR SOFTENING LEATHER.

Patented Feb. 17,1891.

Fig. 2.

UNITED STATns ATENT rrrcn,

NATHANIEL GILLARD, OF ROCHESTER, NEIV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO CURTIS IVIIEELER, OF SAME PLACE.

MACHINE FOR SOFTENING LEATHER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 446,594, dated February 17', 1891.

Original application filed December 24, 1888, Serial No. 294,448. Divided and this application filed September 12, 1890. Serial No. 364,738. (No modeli) To all whom it 71mg concern/.-

Be it known that I, NATHANIEL GILLARD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented an Improved Apparatus for Softening Leather, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to an improved appa- IO ratus for softening the leather used for soles for boots or shoes.

My invention is fully described and illustrated in the following specification and accompanying drawings, and the novel features 1 5 thereof specified in the claims annexed to the said specification.

My invention is represented in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view. Fig. 2 is a side elevation.

My improved apparatus consists, essentially, of a clamp A, for holding one end of the sole which is to be softened, a reciprocatin g holder or presser B, to which the opposite end of the sole is connected during the softening operation, and a bed or plate 0, against which the leather is bent by the movement of the presser, as indicated by the dotted lines D D in Fig. 1. The presser may travel in either a straightline or a circle, although, as indicated in the drawings, I prefer to cause it to swing on the pivot E by means of the lever F. In this case the bed 0 or a portion of it may be curved. The lever and presser 3 5 may swing in either the horizontal or vertical planes; but I find in practice that the horizontal arrangement, as indicated in the drawings, is the most convenient.

The clamp A is constructed in any suitable.

4o manner, so as to hold the end of the insole or blank firmly by pressing it against the plate 0. The clamp is arranged so as to be adjusted to and from the plate 0, being provided, if desired, with a series of lugs or pro 4 5 jecting teeth G, which bear against the leather and hold it in place. The clamp is constructed with an arm H, sliding in a groove, in which it is secured by the cover I, being provided with a lever J, connected by a rod or chain K with a foot-lever, by which the clamp is operated. A spring T, Fig. 1,holds the clamp open or away from the bed, so as to permit the insertion of the blank, which is clamped in place by pressure on the foot-lever.

In operating on insoles the heel end is insorted in the clamp, which is recessed, so as to admit the insole as far as the shank, as it is not desirable to render such articles more flexible, except those portions which come under the body of the foot. Any other suitable form of clamp may, however, be employed.

The reciprocating presser B is provided with a projecting ledge or lip N,under which the end of the sole to be operated on is engaged, as indicated in the drawings. A clamp or other suitable device may be used for the same purpose, and provision may be made for preventing lateral displacement of the blank by ribs or lugs on the upper and lower edges of the presser B.

L is a brace by which the upper end of the screw or pivot E is attached to the bed C.

The operation of the apparatus will have been already understood from the preceding description. The end of the insole which it is desired to soften or render more flexible being inserted in the clamp A, the other end is engaged under the lip N, the leather occupyin g the position indicated by the dotted line D. The presser B is then caused. to reciprocate backward and forward, as represented by the full and dotted lines B B Fig.

1, and the leather being thus repeatedly bent backward and forward on a short curve, as indicated at D D, and pressed firmly between the bed and the presser, becomes softened and greatly increased in flexibility. The operation may be again repeated by removing the sole and then reversing and replacing it, so that go it is bent in the opposite direction. In this way a still further increase in flexibility is obtained.

My invention is specially applicable to the insoles of boots or shoes which are sewed on 5 the well-known Goodyear machine; but it is capable of being applied to other styles of boots or shoes.

The bed or plate and the base 0 are conveniently cast in one piece. In order to provide for the adjustment of the presser, so that it will travel in paths at different distances from the plate 0, I provide it with an arm P, which is attached to the inner end B of the lever F by a bolt passing through a slot or other suitable devices, which permits the curved face of the presser to be set at the dexo sired distance from the plate 0.

Boots or shoes of the style 1nentioned,when provided with insoles softened by my improved apparatus, are not only easier to sew, but they are much more flexible when finished,

and consequentlybetter for the wearers feet. They are as flexible when finished across the ball of the foot as shoes of the same weight of leather after one or two months wearing, and they require no breaking in.

The method or process of softening leather herein described is not claimed, it being the subject of claim in my application, Serial No. 294,448, dated December 24, 1888.

I am aware that clamps and adjustable 2 5 pressers or rollers have been used in machines for operating on leather, and such devices are not broadly'claimed herein. It is characteristic of my improvement that a material part of the sole or other article is so held and 'covo ered by a clamp arranged, preferably, in the plane of the bed that it is protected from the action of the presser, which latter is arranged to carry the part of the leather under treatment to and fro by the part held in the clamp, whereby all except such latter part is softened.

I claiIn- 1. The combination,\vith the bed 0, provided with clamp A, of the reciprocating presser l3 and ledge N, substantially as described.

2. The combination,with the base 0, of the curved bed C, provided with clamp A, the reciprocating presser B, pivot E, and lever F, substantially as described.

3. The combination of the bed 0 with the reciprocating presser B, each being provided with a leather-holding device and the presser adapted to move past the holding device 011 the bed, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of the bed 0, provided with aclamp arranged to receive and protect a material part of the leather, with a presser B, provided with a leather-holding device and adapted to pass to and fro past the clamp, substantially as set forth.

NATHANIEL GI'LLARD.

Witnesses:

P. A. COSTIOH, Gno. B. SELDEN. 

